


This Kid's Not Alright

by DonTomcat



Category: The Walking Dead (TV), Z Nation (TV)
Genre: 10k hasn't been bitten by murphy yet, F/M, also twd and z nation are in the same universe in this story, i also left vasquez out idk why. don't try to place this in any specific episode or something lmao, poor 10k, the boy trusts too many people, the ofc is a meanie, they're just kinda on the go ok just roll with it, this takes place sometime during season 2 idk
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2017-03-26
Updated: 2017-03-26
Packaged: 2018-10-11 01:42:21
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence
Chapters: 2
Words: 2,696
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/10452150
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/DonTomcat/pseuds/DonTomcat
Summary: While the group is on the road, they spot a girl by herself looking for a lift. But something about her seems off...





	1. Chapter 1

It was a particularly hot day and there wasn't a single breeze to soothe the torching heat in the seven seater car that the group had luckily found on one of their recent raids.

Almost everybody in the group was nagging about how they would kill for a fan, except for Roberta, who silently kept her eyes on the road. Even the Z's seemed to be affected by the heat, most of them were trying to protect their rotting flesh by hiding in the shadows of the trees that the group were passing by in the car. 

Then, a few yards ahead, Roberta spotted a small figure holding out a thumb by the side of the road. 

"Guys, do you see that too or is my brain melting already?", Roberta asked the others. Doc, who sat next to her, peaked his head out of the window and squinted his eyes. "I see it too. Looks like a girl, she seems to be by herself. I say, we stop and help her. Or at least ask her if she needs any help. It's not like this girl can knock us all out and steal all of our stuff all by herself."

Roberta kept her eyes on the girl and automatically slowed down. Doc was right. She was tiny and frail, and she didn't look like she could knock any of them out. Roberta definetely didn't trust strangers anymore, but, she thought to herself, she wouldn't make this decision alone. "Alright, who else agrees with Doc, hands up!", Roberta said.

Everybody in the car, except for Roberta and Murphy, who had claimed the entire second backseat of the car to himself, raised their hands. Murphy grumbled something about the car being 'uncomfortably full already' and 'definetely not moving over to make room for a stranger' and then proceeded to stare out of the window.

"Well, it's settled then.", Roberta exclaimed and slowly stepped on the brakes, moving the car to the side of the road where the girl stood. Something about her was odd, Roberta thought. And it wasn't just her neat peter pan collared dress that was way too clean. Not even the girl's high heels or her totally impractical purse. Something about the girl herself and her facial expression was off. Roberta just couldn't put a finger on it. 

Addy interrupted Roberta's thoughts and called from the backseat out of the window: "Hey, can we help you?" 

The girl slowly walked over to them, her heels loudly clicking on the hot asphalt. There's no way she survived this long all by herself in THAT outfit, Roberta thought. To further fuel her suspicions, the girl wore a flawless full face of make up and her hair looked like it had been washed with shampoo recently. Oh, how Roberta missed shampoo.

"Hi, thank you so much for stopping. I've been walking for hours.", the girl said in a soft voice.

"Are you going to church or why are you dressed like that?", Murphy asked from the back of the car. Bless this smurf, Roberta thought. Always asking the right questions. 

"I had to flee from my group's camp. It got overrun by Z's. Then I got seperated from my group. I didn't have time to change, it all happened so quickly and I think everyone is...", her voice cracked and she started to cry. Addy opened the door and got out of the car to hug the girl. "Hey, it's okay. We'll help you. What's your name?" 

The girl sniffled. If this was an act, she deserved an oscar, Roberta thought as she eyed the scene from the driver's seat.  
"I'm Lila. I don't want to be a burden, but could you maybe bring me to the next supermarket so I can at least stock up a little? I can't really get far with these shoes."

Addy, being the angel that she is replied immediately that, yes, of course she could tag along and offered Lila some water. "Oh and this is our small group. We all take care of each other. The fierce lady on the driver's seat is Roberta. I guess you could say she's our leader. Next to her is Doc. He's not a real doctor though. I'm Addy. The angry blue man in the back is Murphy, don't mind him. And this dapper young man-", Addy pointed to 10k, who blushed immediately, "-is 10k."

"Hello everyone, it's so nice to meet you. Thank you for letting me join you for a bit. Where should I sit?" 

"Just hop in next to 10k, then we'll sit next to each other. Unless you want to sit next to the blue grumpy cat right there behind 10k.", Addy laughed.

"I'll sit next to you and 10k. Thanks again." With that, Lila got into the car next to 10k, who coughed slightly and Roberta noticed how close the girl got to him. She told herself to keep an eye on 10k. The boy's hormones were going crazy lately and she didn't want him to fall for this odd girl, who she definetely did not trust.

Addy got into the car after Lila and shut the door. 

Roberta adjusted her rear view mirror, so she could have an eye on Lila. "Okay everybody. Off we go."


	2. Chapter 2

They had been driving for a while now and after Lila had asked everybody some questions, the group turned it around and asked her to tell them more about herself. 

She explained that she lived in some kind of safe city ever since the apocalypse started and that the Z's only got in because a group of robbers left the gates open on purpose after stealing most of their stuff. According to her explanations, her father was the mayor of the city, which is why she was dressed so fancily. She went on to say that the group she fled with protected her as well as they could but that she then got seperated from them and walked for several hours until she found the street that they later picked her up on. 

Addy laughed and added that Lila was lucky that the Z's were too lazy to attack her because of the heat.

Roberta still didn't trust the girl. Her story sounded like she had memorized it, but everybody else in the group seemed to buy it, so she didn't say anything. Maybe the apocalypse had just made her overly suspicious.

"I wanted to ask you before, but I forgot. What kind of name is 10k?", Lila asked sweetly. Roberta looked into the rearview mirror and watched as the girl tilted her head and twirled one of her ginger strands between her fingers. Her long lashes fluttered while she gave 10k a look that Roberta knew all too well. 

"Uhm, it's the number of Z's I wanna kill. It's my personal mission.", he replied shyly. "And what happens when you accomplish it? When you killed tenthousand Z's?"

Roberta furrowed her brows. Usually people would ask what number he's on. 

"Well, I'm still far from that. I'm on 3.797 now. I only know I'll call myself Jeff once I reach my goal."

Roberta could see that the boy was already smitten with Lila. She couldn't blame him, even for non-apocalypse standards she would've been considered very pretty. But in this time, where every woman ran around with greasy hair, this girl was definetely a sight for sore eyes. Too bad Roberta had this weird feeling about her.

"Wow! I know who I'm sticking to now.", Lila laughed and casually put her left hand on 10k's right thigh. Roberta could see the boy tense up. She also didn't miss how he quickly tried to hide his crotch with his awkwardly folded hands while he mustered a small smile towards Lila. 

Roberta decided to interrupt whatever it was that was going on and exclaimed: "Ok folks, we've just arrived in a city, as you can see. There's plenty of shops here, so I guess that means we'll part ways, right, Lila?"

To Roberta's disdain, Addy was being way too nice again. "I think we should help her gather some things. She's unarmed, Roberta. She's never dealt with Z's before. Why don't we split up? You and Murphy can go looking for some fuel, Doc can watch the car and 10k and me can get Lila apocalypse-ready."

"That does sound like a plan. Off we go then, but we meet right here before the sun goes down!", Roberta said through gritted teeth. Doc smiled to himself and lit himself a joint in the car as the two groups walked away from him in different directions. 

After they've walked a few minutes, Lila turned to Addy. "I don't think your leader likes me very much. Did I say something wrong? I didn't offend her, right?"  
"No, you didn't. She just needs some time to open up to people. Sometimes she can come off as a little harsh. Don't worry about it. Now, let's find yourself some comfortable shoes. My feet are already aching just looking at yours. Let's check out that shop over there, ok? Looks like they sell clothes in there."

Addy and 10k walked towards the shop in their apocalypse-adapted speed while Lila struggled to keep up with them in her loudly clicking heels. Suddenly a flock of Z's came shuffling towards them from around a corner. 10k shoved Lila behind him and immediately started shooting the Z's. Addy grabbed her bat and smashed the skulls of the Z's that got too close. Blood and brains splattered all over the place and Lila observed the gorey scene in a state of shock. 

"Well, good thing that this was only a small Z-Gang, eh, 10k?", Addy said, turning to Lila. When Lila didn't respond and just proceeded to stare at the dead Z's, Addy took her hand and started pulling her towards their destination. 10k looked Lila in the eyes and replied: "I think she's in shock. Let's just get her to the shop and then we can calm her down or something."

As they got there, 10k went in first to clear the area. With every shot he fired, Lila flinched a little. Addy stayed with her and whispered reassuring nothings to her while hugging her, until 10k came back to them. "All clear.", he stated. 

"Well, let's go shopping then! Come on, Lila. It's all good. 10k and I will make sure that nothing happens to you.", Addy said as she pulled the shivering girl into the shop. "Aha, look! Combat boots and I think over there's some leather jackets. Looks like this place hasn't been raided yet. We're lucky. What shoe size do you wear? And what size in clothes? There's no way I'm letting you run around without a jacket."

"... Shoes... Seven... Clothes... Six..." 

"Oh boy. She's still gone. 10k, will you try to calm her down while I grab some decent looking stuff?"

10k, not knowing what to do, tapped her lightly on the shoulder and softly spoke: "Are you ok? The Z's are gone you know. And if there's more, Addy and I are both looking out for you. You're alright." 

Lila peeled her gaze off the floor and directed it towards 10k's face. Then she started to cry. "Are you joking? I'm so far from alright. How am I supposed to survive this? Alone? I'm going to die in like a minute!" 

10k looked at her helplessly and hugged her. He didn't know what to say to comfort her. He'd never been good at that. The hug seemed to help, though. He felt her relax against him and her sobbing slowly subsided. Then he felt her head moving upwards to face him and she looked at him through tear stained eyes, her mascara running down her cheeks. He slowly raised a hand and wiped the black stains away. He wondered why anyone would bother to wear make up in the apocalypse but his thoughts were interrupted by Addy, who came back to join them with several leather jackets, different combat boots and a plain black backpack. 

"Ooh, am I disturbing you two?", she asked and wiggled her eyebrows with a wide grin. "I figured that you wanna keep your dress and your black tights, but those shoes definetely need to go. I brought you a backpack too, those are vital in times like this. Your purse won't get you far when it comes to storing your supplies. I've put in some plain shirts and a pair of jeans in case you wanna change clothes sometimes. Also, like I said, you'll need a jacket. Z's have teeth and they like to use them. So here, choose something comfortable." With that, Addy dropped the pile of clothes and shoes on the floor and handed Lila the backpack. "Take your time with the shoes. You'll need to run in them and sleep in them. If they are the tiniest bit uncomfortable, try the next pair. It's not about looking pretty. It's about surviving."

"I don't think I can do that on my own.", Lila whispered softly as she slowly sat down on the floor to take off her heels. When she grabbed the first pair of combat boots, 10k pulled Addy to the side. "I think she's right. She's got no experience killing Z's, she doesn't know where to get food, nothing. Can't we ask Roberta if she can stay with us a little longer?" 

"I was going to propose the same thing. The poor girl is like a deer in the headlights. I'll look out for her by myself if I have to, but I'm not letting Roberta just send her off like this."

Their whispering got interrupted by a whine. "Why are all of these boots so chunky? That's so ugly!"

Addy walked over to the girl on the floor and kneeled down in front of her. "I told you, it's not a fashion matter. Tell me, which ones were 100% comfortable?"

Lila responded by pointing at the pair of studded boots she was wearing. Addy hadn't noticed but the girl had also already chosen a leather jacket, which also had studs on the shoulders. She knew that she was still trying to stay fashionable, and Addy couldn't blame her. "Are you sure that you chose those shoes because they are comfortable and not just because they match your jacket of choice?", Addy asked while raising an eyebrow. 

"I swear, these ones are great! I feel like I can walk in them for days!"

"Good. Because that's exactly what you'll have to do. Actually, make that weeks or even months. We don't stop at fashion shops unless we really have to, you know. Are you still sure that you want to stick with those shoes?" 

"Yes, they really are comfortable. I don't even feel the blisters my high heels gave me, I swear!"

"I don't want to interrupt your girl talk, bur we're getting company in a minute or two.", 10k said, looking out of the shop window. Following his look, there was a large horde of Z's heading their way. Addy looked at Lila and said sternly: "Well, time to proof that you can run in your new shoes, honey. Grab your backpack and stay close to me and 10k. Don't fall behind. Let's go!"

On cue, 10k silently opened the doors and started running towards their car. Addy followed him immediately, and Lila struggled to keep up, the black backpack flopping back and forth in her hand. After 5 minutes of running they reached the car. Roberta, Murphy and Doc, whose eyes were now red from the weed, were already waiting for them. 

"Why is Miss Universe still with you guys? I thought-", Roberta began but got interrupted by Addy. "Can we talk about this later? There's lots of Z's on their way, we gotta get away now!"

"Shit... Ok get in! Quickly!", Roberta commanded, got into the car and started the engine as soon as everybody was in the car. With screeching tires, the group drove off, leaving the Z's behind to become somebody else's problem.


End file.
